Machine for producing eyelet stays



Oct. 16, 1956 w. P. OSGOOD MACHINE FOR PRODUCING EYELET sums 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 17, 1954 Oct. 16, 1956 w. P. OSGOOD MACHINE FOR PRODUCING EYELET STAYS Filed May 1'7, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 16, 1956 w. P. OSGOOD 2,766,826

MACHINE FOR PRODUCING EYELET STAYS Filed May 17, 1954 5 Shets-Sheet E MACHINE FOR PRODUCING EYELET STAYS Walter P. Osgood, Malden, Mass, assignor to Boston Machine Works Company, Lynn, Mass a corporation of Massachusetts Application May 17, 1994, Serial No. 430,065

Claims. (Cl. 164'--68) This invention relates to a machine for producing eyelet stays of any desired length, successive stays of different length being readily available as desired.

In many shoe factories partially completed quarter members are often collected in bundles. in which the members are held together by a single string passed around the pile at the heel seam. The quarter members in such bundles may often be for a variety of shoe sizes. It is desirable that eyelet stays be applied to the inner faces of these members at their extremities where the eyelets are to be fixed. Since for differentrsizes' of shoes different lengths of eyelet stays will be required, it is desirable that the machine be capable of delivering stays of any desired length and that the length of stays for the next quarter member be quickly and'easily ascertainable. According to the invention a machine is provided having a convenient table on which an end portion of a quarter may be held manually with an end of one of its eyelet rows at a fixed gauge, a movable gauge element being movable by a treadle to a point opposite the other end of the eyelet row. The position of the movable gauge element determines the length of the next piece of tape to be delivered by the machine to be applied to the eyelet row as an eyelet stay; The machine carries a'roll of cold tape, that is, textile tape which is tacky on one side only. When the movable gauge element is in the proper position, a one-revolution clutch is thrown in by depression of a treadle. During the single revolution of the main shaft the required amount of tape is drawn from the supply roll, the leading end of the tape is extended toward the table in a position to be easily and conveniently grasped by the operator, one corner of this end having been previously rounded. A piece of tape of a length determined by the positionof the movable gauge element is nearly severed from the standing part of the tape, the nearly severed piece being an eyelet stay which is still attached to the tape by two spaced single threads. These are easily broken manually sothat the severed piece can be applied to the eyelet row of the quarter member on the table. In nearly severing the leading piece of tape a triangular piece is cut out of one edge to round off a corner of the trailing end of the leading piece and alsothe leading end of the standing part of the tape. In this manner, eyelet stays with rounded corners are quickly cut to size and delivered, regardless of frequent changes in size requirement.

For a more complete understanding of the invention reference may be had to the following description thereof and to the drawings, of which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a machine embodying the invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the leading portion of a tape which has been operated on by the machine to form an eyelet stay;

Figure 3' is a section on the line 33'of Figure 5; Figure 4 is a plan view of the work table and movable gauge element;

Figure 5 is a section on the line 5-5 of Figure l;

Patent 0 Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view of the ratchet mechanism for advancing the feed Wheel the required amount for the length of eyelet stay desired;

Figure 7 isa section on the line 7-7 of Figure 5;

Figures 8, 9 and 10 are similar to Figure 7 but show the parts at different stages of operation; and

Figure ll is an elevational view, on an enlarged scale of a cutter element shown in Figure 1.

The machine illustrated on the drawings is a bench type adapted to be mounted on a suitable bench or platform 20 at a convenient height above the floor. The machine has a main frame 22 including vertical walls in which are journalled an upper shaft 24 and a shaft 26. The upper shaft 24 is connected by a one-revolution clutch 28, a gear train 30 and a power belt 32 to a suitable motor 34 which may conveniently be mounted on top of the frame 22. The clutch 2% is of ordinary construction and is connected by a rod 36 to a treadle (not shown). Depressing the treadle causes the clutch 28 to engage: for one revolution of the shaft 24 whereupon the clutch automatically disengages until the treadle is again depressed;

On the end of the shaft 24 remote from the clutch 28 is mounted a cutter holder 40 which revolves. with the shaft. The cutter may conveniently comprise a Y-shaped blade 42 formed on a block 44' which is removably secured in the holder 40. The latter is conveniently but not necessarily a rollwhich is notched to .receive the block 44, The blade 42 rotates with the holder 40 and presses against the periphery of a feed roll 46 which is mounted below the cutter on the shaft 26". The cutting edges of the blade 42 are thus disposed in a cylinder coaxial with the shaft 24. As indicated in Figure 11, the blade 42 has a straight portion with two spaced nicks or notches 48. The rest of the blade consists of two arcuate portions which curve away from each other and serve to round off corners of the eyelet stays by cutting out approximately triangular bits from a strip of indefinite length which is fed by the roll 46. Each time the cutter revolves to operate on the tape, it nearly severs the leadingportion of the tape as an eyelet stay 59 (Figure 2). The nicks 48 leave the stay attached to the standing part of the tape by two weak bonds 52 which may be individual threads. These bonds are spaced apart to keep the eyelet stay from easily twisting relatively to the tape T before it is detached therefrom.

The tape T for the purpose stated is known as, cold tape and is ordinarily a woven fabric about /3" wide with a permanently tacky coating on, one face thereof. The main frame is provided with a suitable bracket 54- to carry a roll of such tape in a convenient position. The

tape from the roll passes around a suitable guide 56 and to the periphery of the feed roll 46 in such a way that the back of the tape, which is not tacky, engages the guide 56 but the tacky face of the tape engages the periphery of the feed roll and sticks thereto until manually pulled off. A leaf spring 58 presses on the tape as it reaches the feed roll so as to ensure a firm adhesion of the tape to the feed roll.

Mounted on the bench 20 beside the machine and preferably attached to the main frame 22 is a work table 60 adapted to support quarter members of shoe uppers to which eyelet stays are to be applied; Figure 4 shows a quarter W for a shoe of the Bal type, an eyelet row 62 of this quarter being in position on the table 60 to receive an eyelet stay on the area indicated in broken lines. The left hand edge 64 of the table is a fixed gauge element at which an end of the eyelet row 62 is placed as shown. A movable gauge element 66 is provided at the end of the table. Guide lines 68 are on the table to assist the operator in shifting the gauge element 66 to a position in line with the other end of the eyelet row 62 of the quarter W. The movable gauge element 66 is shown as an index or pointer which projects through and is guided by a horizontal slot 70 in a plate 72 which is fixed to the end edge of the table 60. The gauge element 66 is mounted on the end of a link 74 the other end of which is pivotally attached to a bell crank which is rockably mounted on the shaft 26. The bell crank consists of a collar 76 loosely mounted on the shaft 26 or, as shown, on the hub 78 of a ratchet wheel 80 which is fixed on the shaft 26. From the collar 76 a short arm 82 projects downward. The link 74 is attached to this arm. Another arm 84 projects out from the collar 76 and to it is attached a tension member 86 which extends down to a treadle (not shown) for convenience of operation. It is evident from Figure 1 that a depression of this treadle will pull the arm 84 downward, rock the collar 76 clockwise, and pull the link 74 toward the left, causing the movable gauge element 66 to move toward the fixed gauge element 64. Conversely, elevation of the treadle will cause movements of these parts in the opposite directions. Hence the operator can use one foot to shift the gauge element 66 as desired, leaving his hands free to hold the work pieces and to pull successive eyelet stays from the tape T as they are successively cut by the machine. Thus eyelets stays can readily be applied to bundled quarter members without breaking the bundle, the bundle being customarily held together by a single string or rubber band around the members at the back seam thereof. 1

When an eyelet stay is desired from the machine for a work piece an eyelet row of which has been placed on the table 60, the movable gauge element 66 is moved to the proper point with respect to the work piece and the clutch treadle is depressed to throw in the clutch 28 for one revolution. This revolves the shaft 24 and cutter 44 counterclockwise from the position shown in Figure 1 to the same position. The feed roll 46 is also rotated in the clockwise direction, the angle of such rotation depending on the length of the eyelet stay which is to be cut from the tape by the cutter 44.

To drive the feed roll 46 and the shaft 26 on which it is fixed, a ratchet mechanism is provided. This comprises the ratchet wheel 80 which has ratchet teeth on its periphery, and a pawl 90 which is connected to an eccentric strap 92 on an eccentric 94 mounted on the shaft 24, the connection being through the bell crank consisting of a sleeve 96 loosely mounted on the shaft 26, an arm 98 projecting from the sleeve to which the pawl is pivotally attached, and another arm 100 to which the eccentric strap 92 is attached. It is evident from Figures -10 that rotation of the shaft 24 results in a reciprocation of the pawl 90 through alternating driving strokes toward the right and retraction strokes toward the left, all these strokes being of constant length. A compression spring device 102 inserted between a lug 104 carried by the arm 100 and the pawl 90 presses the nose 106 of the pawl toward the ratchet wheel 80.

In order to obtain from the machine eyelet stays of diiferent lengths in accordance to the individual requirements of the work pieces as reflected by the location of the movable gauge element 66, the pawl 99 is held out of engagement with the ratchet wheel for a portion of its driving stroke, such portion being variable so that the remainder or effective portion of the driving stroke is also variable. For this purpose a cam element 110 is provided on the periphery of the collar 76 to which the 'link 74 is connected. The pawl is provided with a fixed pin 112 near its free end which is arranged to engage the periphery of the collar 76 when the nose 106 of the pawl engages the teeth of the ratchet wheel. When, however, the pin 112 bears on the cam 110, the nose 106 is held out of engagement with the teeth. The cam is located so that the pin 112 is on it at the beginning of each driving stroke of the pawl. The effective portion of the driving stroke begins when the pin rides off the end of the cam onto the periphery of the collar 76. By shifting the cam clockwise (Figures 710) the effective portion of the driving stroke is shortened. Such shifting results from a depression of the treadle to which the tension member 86 is attached. A simultaneous result is a shift of the movable gauge element 66 (Figures 1 and 4) toward the left. The members of the linkage are so proportioned that a shift of the gauge element 66 is accompanied by a corresponding shift of the earn 110 to lengthen or shorten the effective portion of the driving stroke of the pawl and hence of the angle through which the feed roll 46 is advanced by the pawl. This advance determines the length of the eyelet stay which will be formed and merely severed when the cutter 44 bears on the feed roll 46 in passing.

In order to reduce noise and wear on the ratchet wheel during the operation of the machine, a device is provided to hold the pawl clear of the ratchet wheel during each retractive movement thereof. For this purpose a disk 116 with a large central aperture is loosely mounted on the hub 78 of the ratchet wheel between the collar 76 and the series of ratchet teeth 80. Thus the pin 112 of the pawl 90 extends across the edge of the disk 116. A recess roughly in the form of a wide-angled V is provided in the periphery of the disk 116. From the low point 118 of the recess, the edge 120 slopes outward in one direction and the edge 122 slopes outward in the other direction. The latter edge includes a shallow notch 124 where it reaches the circular circumference of the disk. When the pin 112 is at the low point 118 of the recess in the disk, the pawl can engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel 80. When the pin 112 is in the notch 124 or is on a corresponding portion of the edge 120, the pwl is held out of engagement with the teeth. The disk 116 is frictionally connected to the sleeve 96 by a suitable leaf spring 126 carried by the sleeve and pressing on the disk. Thus when the sleeve 96 is reciprocated, the disk is dragged along until positively stopped. The angle of throw of the disk is less than that of the pawl and is limited by a fixed stop member 130 which has two horns 132 and 134 engageable by a pin 136 projecting from a face of the disk. Thus the disk can oscillate only between the position shown in Figures 7 and 10 and that shown in Figure 8. This disk operates as follows. When the pawl is approaching the end of its driving stroke during a part of which the pawl pin 106 has been at or near the low point 118 of the disk edge, the disk is rotated by the sleeve 96 frictionally until the disk pin reaches the stop 132. The disk stops but the pawl continues on so that the pin 112 rides up the edge 122 and into the notch 124, thus separating the pawl from the ratchet teeth at the end of its driving stroke. The clutch 28 is so ar ranged that the rotation of the shaft 24 stops at this point. When the clutch is thrown in for the next revolution of the shaft 24, the shaft starts from the angular position shown in Figure 7 and rotates counterclockwise through the position illustrated in Figures 8, 9 and 10. The eccentric rocks the sleeve 96 counterclockwise carrying the pawl through its retractive stroke. The disk 116 is carried along with the sleeve 96 so that the pawl pin 112 remains in the notch 124 and the pawl is out of engagement with the ratchet wheel. This situation continues until the disk pin 136 reaches the stop element 134 whereupon further movement of the disk stops but the pawl continues, the pawl pin 112 moving out of the notch 124 and down the disk edge 122. But by this time the pin 112 has reached the near end of the cam 110 which holds the pawl clear of the ratchet teeth during the remainder of the retractive stroke. As the rotation of the shaft 24 continues from the position shown in Figure 8, the eccentric rocks the sleeve 96 in the other direction and the pawl makes its driving stroke, the pin 112 being on the Cam. .110 but radially outward from the low point 118 of the disk edge. When the pin 112 rides oif the end of the cam 110 it drops into the disk recess at the low' point 118 as the disk is carried along with the sleeve 96 and pawl during most of the driving stroke. The nose 106 thereupon engages a tooth cf the ratchet wheel 80 and rotates the feed wheel 46 until the disk pin 136 reaches the stop 132. The disk 116 stops but the sleeve 96 with Y the pawl 90 continues on until the pawl pin 112 rides up the disc edge 122 into the shallow notch 124, disengaging the nose 106 of the pawl from the ratchet wheel 80. This completes a cycle of operations of the mechanism for advancing the feed roll 46, this cycle occurring during a single revolution of the shaft 24. Since the cutter 44 rotates with this shaft, it makes one complete revolution during the cycle and stops at its usual position of rest after engaging the feed roll and thereby nearly severing the leading portion of the tape in the form of a completed eyelet stay. The usual position of the cutter 44 is preferably about as shown in Figure 1, that is, well beyond its point of contact with the feed roll 46. When the machine is operated, the tape advances a substantial amount after the cuttter operates on it, the leading portion being the nearly severed eyelet stay. Most of this eyelet stay clings adhesively to the periphery of the feed roll 46, but the end portion is free for easy grasping. As soon as a cycle of operations has been completed the operator grasps the free end portion of the eyelet stay and pulls it away from the standing portion of the tape to which it is attached by the weak bonds 52. This manual pull on the eyelet stay draws the stay and adjacent portion of the tape away from adhesive contact with the feed wheel. This adjacent portion of the tape becomes the free portion of the next eyelet stay to be formed by the next operation of the machine. In this manner eyelet stays are quickly provided in any size in accordance with the position of the movable index element 66 which is controlled by operation of a treadle to a position visually determined, precise accuracy not being important. Each contact of the cutter with the feed roll rounds off a corner on the trailing end of the eyelet stay at the leading end of the tape, rounds off a corner of the leading end of the next eyelet stay to be formed, and nearly severs the completed eyelet stay which is to be manually detached. The triangular pieces of tape severed by the curved portions of the blade 42 cling to the periphcry of the feed roll 46 until scraped off by a suitable doctor or scraper blade 144) which is mounted on the main frame and presses resiliently against the feed roll.

Since the successful operation of the machine to pro duce eyelet stays of the correct desired lengths depends in part on the shaft 26 always stopping at the same place when the nose 166 of the pawl 9% is moved clear of the ratchet wheel 80, braking means are provided to prevent possible overthrow of the ratchet wheel. Such means are shown in Figures 3 and 5. A brake drum or disk 142 is mounted on the shaft 26. A brake shoe 144 is carried by a lever 146 pivoted at 148 and is urged toward contact with the drum 142 by a spring 150. A cam 152 is mounted on the shaft 24. This cam is circular except for a low spot or depression 154. The lever 146 carries a cam follower 156 which bears on the earn 152 and holds the brake shoe 144 away from the drum 142 except when it enters the depression 154. The parts are arranged so that the follower 156 enters the depression at the moment when the pawl pin 112 enters the notch 124 in the disk 116. When the next operation of the machine occurs, the brake is at once released when the shaft 24 begins to rotate.

To avoid injury to the fingers of the operator which might result from attempting to thread the tape around the guide 56 and feed roll 46 when the machine is operating, a shield plate 16% is mounted on the main frame to cover these parts. This shield is pivoted at 162 and can be swung aside to provide access to the feel roll. To hold the shield in place it is made of resilient materiall which must be sprung outward to move an arm 164 thereof clear of a stud 166 before the plate can be swung aside. When the plate is in the position shown in Figures 1 and 5, the arm 164 presses inward a springpressed plunger 168 which holds a micro-switch 17 0 closed until the plate is sprung out to be swung aside. The micro-switch controls the circuit through the motor 34 so that the latter cannot operate while the switch 170 is open, that is, when the plate is not in its safe guarding position.

I claim:

1. A machine for producing eyelet stays, comprising a frame, a feed roll for tape ro-tatably' mounted on said frame, a rotatable cutter adjacent to said roll, said cutter having a blade arranged to engage the periphery of said roll each time the cutter makes a revolution, ratchet means for rotating said roll through a predetermined angle with each revolution of the cutter, means for adjusting the throw of the ratchet means to vary the angle through which the feed roll is turned during a revolution of the cutter prior to the engagement of the blade on the periphery of the feed roll, and common means for driving said cutter and said ratchet means.

2. A machine for producing eyelet stays, comprising a table having a gauge mark thereon, a movable gauge element adjacent to said table, manually operable means for moving said element toward or from said gauge mark, a tape-feeding wheel rotatably mounted near said tables, means supplying tape to said wheel, a rotatable cutter having a blade arranged to engage the periphery of said wheel each time the cutter makes a revolution, means for driving said cutter, means for driving said feed wheel step by step through predetermined angles of rotation, and means connected with said movable gauge element and operable thereby to vary the relationship of said driving means for the feed wheel and cutter to produce eyelet stays of different lengths in accordance with the positions of said movable gauge element relative to said gauge mark.

3. A machine as in claim 2, said drive means for the feed wheel comprising a ratchet wheel connected to said feed wheel, a pawl reciprocable through a stroke of constant length, a cam engageable by said pawl to hold said pawl clear of said ratchet during a portion of each stroke thereof, and means operatively connecting said cam with the movable gauge element for simultaneous movement whereby any shift of said gauge element results in a corresponding shift of said cam to alter the length of the effective portion of the stroke of the pawl in accordance with the position of the movable gauge element.

4. In a machine having a frame and a. shaft journalled in said frame, means for imparting step by step rotation to said shaft, said means comprising a ratchet wheel fixed on said shaft, a pawl mounted adjacent to said ratchet wheel and reciprocable through driving and retraction strokes of constant length, cam means engageable by said pawl to hold said pawl clear of the ratchet Wheel during a portion of each stroke, means for shifting said cam means to vary the length of the effective portion of the driving stroke of said pawl, and means cooperating with said cam to hold said pawl clear of the ratchet wheel through the entire extent of each retraction stroke of the pawl, said last named means comprising a carrier member engageable by said pawl at the end of its driving stroke to lift the pawl clear of the ratchet wheel, said carrier member being mounted for limited movement to carry said pawl during each retractive movement until the pawl engages said cam.

5. In a machine having a frame and a. shaft journalled in said frame, means for imparting step by step rotation to said shaft, said means comprising a ratchet wheel fixed on said shaft, a sleeve loosely mounted on said shaft adjacent to said ratchet wheel, a pivoted pawl carried by said sleeve and adapted for engagement with said ratchet wheel, means for oscillating said sleeve and pawl through strokes, a disk frictionally engaging said sleeve to be oscillated therewith about the axis of the shaft, and stop means adapted to stop saiid disk before the sleeve reaches either end of its stroke, said disk having cam edge portions engageable by said pawl to move said pawl out of engagement with saidratchet wheel as the pawl completes 1ts driving stroke after the disk has been stopped.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 700,141 Grall May 13, 1902 964,614 Coe et al. July 19, 1910 1,163,815 Evensen Dec. 14, 1915 1,417,907 Hess et a1 May 20, 1922 2,137,643 Cirac et a1. Nov. 22, 1938 2,170,609 Nedal Aug. 22, 1939 

